"A Charlottesville jury on Friday found that local television station WVIR-TV (Channel 29) defamed a Greene County man in its reporting of a federal drug case in 2001. The jurors then awarded him $10 million in compensation.

The verdict is the culmination of a two-year dispute between Stanardsville resident Jesse Sheckler, 52, and the NBC affiliate over news stories in which a WVIR reporter incorrectly reported that authorities had confiscated cocaine at Sheckler’s residence.

Matthew Murray, who represented Sheckler in the civil suit in Charlottesville Circuit Court, had requested the $10 million award and seemed unsurprised at the jury’s decision. Sheckler, his wife and two daughters all burst into tears when the verdict was announced.

“The amount is entirely justified to the extent of damages suffered by Mr. Sheckler,” Murray said. “It is a damn shame when a man has to sue to get an incorrect story retracted. I hope this sends a message to the media to respect the rights of the little man.”

WVIR wrongly reported in news stories on April 6, April 7, Oct. 29 and Oct. 30, 2001, that authorities found cocaine during a raid on Sheckler’s home and business. No drugs ever were confiscated from Sheckler’s property.

Sheckler, who operates an automotive garage behind his home on Pea Ridge Road, had been indicted, arrested and tried on a federal charge that he helped finance convicted drug dealer Samuel Rose. Sheckler had loaned between $37,000 and $47,000 to Rose in 1999 to help Rose finance a construction project. Sheckler said he knew nothing of the drug business when he agreed to the loan, and he eventually was acquitted.

Melinda Semadeni, the reporter who first covered the Sheckler case for WVIR, testified that assistant U.S. attorney Bruce Pagel was her source for the information that was reported about a drug bust at Sheckler’s home. Pagel denied telling Semadeni of the seizure.

Further, Pagel and his legal assistant both testified that Semadeni came to the U.S. Attorney’s office seeking a copy of the indictment against Sheckler, lied in order to obtain the case file and eventually broke down and cried in Pagel’s office when the prosecutor confronted her about the subterfuge.

But Friday, former Daily Progress reporter Keri Schwab testified that she, not Semadeni, was the reporter who had the tearful meeting with Pagel and his assistant. Schwab left the paper in June 2002.

“First and foremost, this is a case of mistaken identity,” said Thomas Albro, attorney for Virginia Broadcasting Corp., which owns WVIR-TV. Albro added that the plaintiff attempted to vilify Semadeni with accusations of deceit.

Daily Progress Managing Editor Lou Hatter said the newspaper was unaware of the incident recounted in Schwab’s testimony. He said the paper strives to uphold the highest ethical standards in its newsgathering and reporting and neither approved nor condones Schwab’s actions as described in her testimony.

Murray told the six-woman, one-man jury that WVIR did not retract the report, despite calls from Sheckler’s criminal attorney, who brought attention to the inaccuracy in Semadeni’s report.

Sheckler contended that the report, viewed by thousands of people, ruined his reputation in the community and caused him physical stress, including broken teeth, which required a root canal.

Albro argued it was impossible to determine that stress Sheckler experienced since 2001 was the result of the WVIR report and that his indictment, arrest and criminal trial likely brought on the emotional burden. In a taped deposition, Sheckler broke down in tears when asked how he explained his arrest to his wife and daughters.

Albro declined to comment on the $10 million award.

“The judge gave us 21 days to make a motion to set aside the verdict, and we will do that,” Albro said." (Liesel Nowak, The Daily Progress, May 24, 2003)

Contact Liesel Nowak at (434) 978-7274 or lnowak@dailyprogress.com

Editor's Note: For more, see Index for Defamation Suit Against WVIR as Covered on Loper Website.